Apparatus for making stencils.



A. B. DICK. APPARATUS FOR MAKING STENCILS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 25, HHS.

Patented A pr. 4, 1916.

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WIT/VESSES /1 TTORNEYS A. B. DICK.

A APPARATUS FOR MAKING STENCILS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 25. |915.

Patented Apr. 4, 1916..

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APPARATUS FOR MAKING STENCILS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 25| 1915.

Pat-eted Apr. 4,1916:

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IN VE/V TOI? A 7TORIIEY8 UNITED .sTATEs PATENT oEEioE. A

ALBERT B. DICK, OF LAKE FOREST, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO A. B. DICK COMPANY, OF

' CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A vCORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Original application iiled September 26, 1914, Serial No. 863,654. Divided and this application filed February 25, 1915. Serial No. 10,389. l

citizen of the United States, residing at Lake Forest, in the A county of Lake and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Apparatus for Making Stencils, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to the art of making stencils and particularly to the art of preparing astencil for use upon a duplicating machine, in making multiple copies.

By my invention, stencils may be made expeditiously and accurately from an electrotype, block of type, or other form of printed matter, or other matter having sharply defined surfaces from which it is desired a stencil should'be cut to be subsequently used in making duplicate copies.

The object of my invention ,is to provide a novel apparatus for preparing stencils.-

In my application Serial No. 863,654, filed September 26, 1914 is described and claimed 'a novel method of making stencils in the manner referred to.

My present application is a division of my application Serial No. 863,654 referred to, and will describe and claim suitable apparatus by which the method referred to may be carried out.

My improved methodas described in my earlier application referred to, consists, primarily and broadly, in pressing-the stencil lightly against the stencil-making member a plurality of times, as by placing the stencil in position upon the electrotype or other .stencil-making member and forming the stencil from this member by the cumulative effect of a considerable number of applications of pressure upon the stencil-sheet,.the impacts of the pressing body being light and insuliicient individually to form a stencilof the desired sharpness and depth.

More specifically, the method preferably comprises laying the stencil-sheet upon the stencil-making member, securing the stencilvsheet at one. extremity and then applying pressure lightlyas described a plurality of times in such a manner as to constantly hold the Vstencil-sheet under tension, the pull of the sheet uponits securing devices bemg,

, however, insuflicient to cause the sheet to creep or inove relatively to the `stencil-cutting member. .Y

-I have found that when a stencil-sheet is lald upon an electrotype or other member from which it is desired to form a stencil from which, for example, a page of printed matter 1s to be duplicated, and the stencilvsheet is held at one end and a lroller passed over the sheet With a sufficient amount of pressure to cause the stencil to be cut at a single operation, the pressure required is sufficient to injure the roller and also the electrotype or type surface used for cutting the stencil as well as for the backing of the type matter. Such an operation also results inthe formation of a poor stencil. If a stencil is attempted to be made by passing a roller or rollers over the stencil-sheet a number of times with comparatively heavy pressure, a blurred effect will be caused because of the creep of the paper, due to the considerable tension exerted lengthwise upon the same, so that such a stencil is unfit for commercial use. I have found, however, that the roller may be passed over the stencil-sheet with a light pressure a number of times, for example, from nine to twelve times, withtheresult that a perfect clearly defined stencil is produced, the pressure exerted being insuflicient to cause creep of the paper and insufficient to injure the type surface or the roller, the stencil being cut by the cumulative effect of the repeated applications of the pressure. The machine or apparatus which will be described and claimed Patented Apr. 4, 1916.

herein constitutes an effective and rapid being in Contact -with the stencil-sheet.l

Means are provided for regulating the pressure exerted by the rollers upon the sheet and' t'ype matter under the same, this regulating means preferably consisting in Ymechanism for raising or lowering the support on whichN the type matter and stencil .are carried toward or away from the `plane in which the' rollers move -above the stencil-sheet.

Preferably the' electrotype 0r otherstencilcutting member and the stencil-sheet thereof a standard printed form having spaces therein to be subsequently filled in by individual data may be prepared by the method above briefly described for an electrotype or other printing member. The stencil is then removed from the printing member and the spaces left in the printed form filled in on the stencil as by inserting the stencil-sheet" in a typewriting machine where the remainder of the characters to be printed are cut in the stencil by operation of the typewriting machine in the usual manner, care being observed to secure exact registrations of these characters with Ithe matter previously cut in the stencil from the electrotype. The stencil may then be applied to the drum of a stencil-duplicating machine for use in printing multiple copies from the stencil in the usual manner. By this process, workmay be done by stencil duplication which previously was chiey carried out by other. methods. In many classes of work it has been common to use printed forms for various purposes and to ill in the blanks of these forms with a typewriter which is often an exceedingly laborious method. It has not been practicable to ill in the blanks of these forms with a stencil-duplicator for the Y reason that proper registration of the new matter with the matter of the printed form has not been commercially attainable. By my method, a stencil of the completed form with the spaces filled in may be obtained in an eicient, economical and clear cut Inan-A ner, as stated, by making the stencil of the electrotype or printed form in the manner described and then filling in the spaces on a typewriter, whereby a stencil is obtained from which as many copies as desired may be printed of the completed form.

In order that my invention may be more ully understood, attention is -hereby directed to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this application and illustrating a preferred form of mechanism for making a stencil from an electrotype or lprinting member. j

- In the drawings, Figure 1 represents a longitudinal section of the preferred machine, Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same, certain lparts being omitted, Fig. 3 is a plan view of the machine, broken away and sectioned in part, Fig. 4 is a transverse section taken on line 1 4-v of Fig. 1, Fig. 5 is an Aa typewriter.

enlarged transverse section of the bar by which the stencil-sheet is secured in posi- `tic-n, Fig. 6 is an enlarged partial plan view of one end of the stencil-sheet secured in position above the printing member, Fig. 7 is a partial section of the same, taken on line 7-7 of Fig. 6, Fig. 8 is a plan View of a stencil-sheet whichl has been formed by the machine described and Fig. 9 represents the same sheet in which various blanks of the same have been filled in by cutting the appropriate characters on the stencil-sheet on Referring to the drawings, the machine is represented as having a base 1 from which rise side-frames 2 and 3. The shafts 4. and 5 mounted in the side frames carry cams 6 and 7 on which the support 8 is mounted. The shaft 4 is provided with a y crank-handle 9, and shafts 4 and 5 are provided with cranks 10 and 11, connected by a. rod 12, so that rotation of the handle 9 results in an equal rotation of the cams 6 and 7 and a consequent raising or lowering of the table 8. Crank handle 9 may be held in any adjusted lpositio-n by the coaction of a pair of spring-pressed pins thereon i with the holes 13 in a sector 14 secured to the side-frame 2, these pins having rounded ends, and being adapted toenter the holes a slight distance only, so that by applying a little force to the handle'it may readily be moved onward.

The electrotype or other printing member 15 is mounted upon the table 8 and may be secured thereto in any desired manner as by screwing the same to the ace of the table. Preferably a sheet of somewhat yielding rubber 16 is interposed between the printing member andthe table. The stencil-sheet 17 with its backing shet 18 is placed upon the face of the printing member and secured as the printing member which` is secured to the table. In this case, a projection or lip v21 upon the forward edge of the electrotype or chase of type extends over the curved forward edge 22 of bar 19 and'is secured to the v bar by screws 23, passing through the lug 21 and into Webs 24 in the bar. Bar 19 is provided with an upper rear surface 25 which slopes downwardly to the rear and on which is mounted the button-bar or device 26 for securing the end of the backing-sheet. Bar 19 is provided with a number of Vupwardly extending screw-threaded pins 27` over which the openingsor button-holes 28 at the end of the stencil backing-sheet are slipped, after which bar 26 is positioned upon the end of the composite stencil and the nuts 29 carried by bar 26 are screwed tight upon pins 27 to tightly hold the end of the backing-sheet, to which is suitably secured the stencil-sheet. Bar 26 is provided with flanged members 30 which coact with flanges 31 on nuts 29 to prevent the nuts being separated from the bar and lost. Surface on which bar 2G is located is given the downward inclination referred to so that the devices for securing the backing-sheet and therefore the stencil-sheet will be substantially below the plane in which the face movement.

. apart on the chains.

The impression rollers are carried, `as stated, by a flexible carrier or carriers, one flight of which will carry the rollers into coaction with the stencil-sheet. As illustrated` the machine is provided with shafts 32 and 33 extending between the side-frames on which are mounted sprocket wheels 34 and 35 over which pass sprocket chains 36 and 37 one inside of each side-frame of the machine. The impression rollers 38 are carried by the chains 36 and 37 in parallel relation, the rollers being rotatably mounted on shafts 39 carried by links of the chain. The rollers are preferably three in number, although my invention is not limited in this respect, and are preferably formed of hard rubber and are spaced at equal distances The side-frames 2 and 3 are provided with horizontal guides 40 ex tending inwardly and the shafts 39 on which the rollers are mounted are provided adjacent their ends with disks 41 which contact the under sides of guides 40 as the rollers travel in their upper flight above the stencilsheet, so that movement of the rollers in a horizontal plane above the stencil-sheet and printing member is assured. The pressure which is exerted between the rollers 38 and the stencil-sheet and printing member on which the same vis carried is regulated by raising` the table 8 by means of hand-crank 9 until the desired light impact of the roll` ers upon the stencil-sheet is secured. The

machine may be operated in any desired to cause lengthwise moving or creeping of the stencil-sheet relative to the printing member as the rollers pass over the stencilsheet, the stencil being formed by the cumulative effect of the repeated light applica-l tions of pressure. As the rollers pass over the sheet, they contact the latter first adjacent the edge at which it is secured to the backing-sheet adjacent to the buttonholes in the latter, and as preferably there is always one roller in contact with the sheet, the latter exerts a constant slight pull upon its se-f curing devices.

Preferably, the printing member 15 with the stencil-sheet thereon is disposed at a slight angle to the vertical axis of the machine, or, to put it differently, so that the lines of type on the printing memberare disposed at ay slight angle to the axes of the impression rollers. By this means, less pres sure need be exerted upon the pressure rollers than if the latter contacted the whole of the first and each subsequent line of type at the same instant, and accordingly, sharper definitions of the characters cut on the stencil are obtained when the printing member is mounted in the angular manner described and the tendency to injure the stencil, at points corresponding with the type lines, is minimized.

.It is obvious that my invention may be carried out with different details of con-4 struction from those described, so long as a -plurality of pressure-exerting members are caused to pass over the stencil-sheet in the manner described.

A stencil-sheet having form data cut tion of a typewriting machine as stated, this figure illustrating the completed stencil which is adapted for use in a stencil-duplicating machine.v

Having now particularly described my invention, what I claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent is as follows 1. In apparatus for making stencils, the combination of a support, a stencil-making member thereon, means comprising a button-bar for securing a composite stencilsheet on said member, said composite sheet containing a backing-sheet having buttonholes adj acent the end thereof. pressure rollers, means for causing the rollers to pass in succession over the stencil-sheet, to successively press said sheet 'against said mem` ber, and means for adjusting the pressure exerted bv said rollers on the stencil-sheet, substantially as set forth. j

2. Inl apparatus for making stencils. the combination of a support, a stencil-makingv member thereon, means for securing one end of a composite stencil-sheet to said support, so that the sheet will lie upon said member, said composite sheet containing a backingsheet having button-holes adjacent the end 'thereof to be engaged with said securing means, a plurality of pressure devices, a pair of endless flexible carriers by which the devices are carried, means for moving the carriers to cause the devices to successively pass over the stencil-sheet, from the direction of the end of the sheet at which the latter is secured, and means for adjusting the pressure exertedy by the devices on the sheet and stencil-making member thereunder, substantially as Set forth.

3. In apparatus for making stencils, the combination cfa support, a stencil-making member thereon, means for securing one end of a composite stencil-sheet to said mem ber, so that the sheet will lie upon said member, said composite sheet containing a backing-sheet having button-holes adjacent the end thereof yto be engaged with said securing means, a pair of fieXible endless carriers mounted to be movable over said sheet from the direction of the end of the sheet at which the latter is secured, aplurality of parallel pressure devices carried by said carriers, and means for causing said devices to contact the sheet, i'n their passage over the same, withy a relatively'light pressure, said devices being so spaced upon the carriers that one of the same is always in contact with the sheet in the operation of the device, substantially'as set forth.

4c. In apparatus for making stencils, the

combination of a support, a stencil-making member thereon, means for attaching a composite stencil-sheet to said member, comprising a bar adapted to-be s ecured to said member having attaching devices for the stencil-sheet situated below the plane of the face of said member,l a flexible carrier mounted to be movable over said sheet from the direction of the end of the sheet at which the latter is secured, a plurality of pressure devices carried by said carrier, adapted to successively press the sheet against said stencil-making member, means for causing said devices to move in a plane parallel to the face of said member, and means for adjusting the pressure between said devices and said member and sheet thereon, substantially as set forth.

5. In apparatus for making stencils, the combination of a support, a stencil-making member thereon, and means for attaching a composite stencil-sheet in position to overlie said member, comprising a bar adapted to abut against one end of said member and having a downwardly and rearwardly inclined upper surface, and attaching devices for a stencil sheet mounted on said surface with the upper ends of the same below the plane of the face of said member, substan' tially as set forth.

This specification signed and witnessed this v23rd day of February, 1915.

l ALBERT B. DICK. Witnesses:

WV. G. ARNOLD, M. I-I. Biiniinirr. 

